Photo 1. Mrs. Koraljka Vahtar-Jurković, Ph.D., speaking at the public
presentation concerning St. Jacob’s Park.

PUBLIC PRESENTATION AS PART OF THE PUBLIC APPRAISAL OF THE PROPOSAL TO PROCLAIM ST. JACOB’S PARK IN OPATIJA A MONUMENT OF PARK ARCHITECTURE

On 28 April 2010, a public presentation was held at the
Opatija Town Hall as part of the public appraisal of the proposal to proclaim
St. Jacob’s Park in Opatija a monument of park architecture. Attending
the presentation were 12 representatives of the parties involved: the
Town of Opatija, the company “Parkovi”, the State Institute
for Nature Protection, the Administrative Department for Construction
and Environmental Protection, the company “Perivoj” that elaborated
the protection proclamation study, and the Public Institution “Priroda”.

A number of speakers participated in the interesting
and informative public presentation of the need to protect St. Jacob’s
Park. Mrs. Koraljka Vahtar-Jurković, Ph.D., head of the Administrative
Department for Construction and Environmental Protection, whose doctoral
dissertation dealt with the parks of Opatija, was the first to note, and
bring attention to, the need of providing protection to St. Jacob’s Park.
Mrs. Irina Zupan, M.Sc., of the State Institute for Nature Protection
reflected on the legal procedure required for proclaiming protection,
while Mrs. Dobrila Kraljić, M.Sc., spoke of the values and special features
of St. Jacob’s Park. At the end of the meeting, Mrs. Marina Gašparić,
Mayor of Opatija, thanked all attendants for their efforts in proclaiming
protection for St. Jacob’s Park.

The procedure for providing protection to natural assets
is highly complex and demanding, and this provided all the more reason
to commend the excellent cooperation of all organisations involved in
this procedure, from national institutions across county institutions
to the Town of Opatija and the company “Parkovi” that have appropriately
cared for the maintenance and improvement of Opatija’s parks.

The public appraisal remains open until 20 May 2010,
and interested parties may view the documents required – the Decision
on Proclamation, the Analytical Basis for Protection in the Category of
Monument of Park Architecture, cartographic supplements, Consent for the
Proposal of the Proclamation Act – and are invited to write their comments
and opinions in the Book of Comments at the Registry Office of the Town
of Opatija (Maršala Tita 3, Opatija) from 19 April to 20 May 2010 (Monday
to Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.). The above documents are also available
on the Web pages of the Public Institution “Priroda”, and comments
may be sent in written form to the Administrative Department for Construction
and Environmental Protection of Primorsko-Goranska County, Riva 10, Rijeka.